A blog entry every day, he said. Got to keep followers interested, good and frequent posts are important, he said.

Robbie Burns keeps coming to mind - "the best laid plans". Oh, well. How much do good intentions count?

I've been occupied lately with CreateSpace, Amazon's self-publishing system. After going through the set-up process, I finally got the manuscript to the "proof ready" point and I am currently waiting for the proofs. If they look good, I approve them on the site and they become available for purchase. CreateSpace has three different venues for sales: Amazon itself (which takes a 58% cut from the list price), an "eStore" that gets set up for you through which you can sell the books semi-independently with them taking a 38% cut, or their "Expanded Distribution" which takes a 78% cut but opens the book to sales to libraries and chains such as WalMart and Costco (I think). All their cuts include printing and shipping costs, so the remainder is direct royalty profit for the author. It seems like a good arrangement, especially as it avoids all the hassles of stocking, shipping, billing, etc. And if their promise of "expanded distribution" come through, sales of this book to libraries and chains could be significant and more than worth the reduced royalty.

Now to research marketing to these potential purchasers... I will try to be more diligent in keeping you posted.